Awesome. All the default ports are correct and the MT-32 emulation is working. 😄

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-20, 16:27:

Yeah, so, even with the ISA sound card removed, I still get a BSOD on boot if I have the SB driver enabled. And the audio ports are still set different. I really don’t understand the config of its drivers though. As I said, if I type the syntax as it shows, it just says it’s an invalid switch.

The bsod on boot is because the windows driver doesn't like the dos ones or their initialized state on your system. I get the same thing on a p4 based system. Try moving the initialization to a separate batch file.

I suspect your command line is wrong with the dos config. If you post the command line you're using and someone here can tell you what's wrong with it.

sharangad wrote on 2025-11-21, 01:48:

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-20, 16:27:

Yeah, so, even with the ISA sound card removed, I still get a BSOD on boot if I have the SB driver enabled. And the audio ports are still set different. I really don’t understand the config of its drivers though. As I said, if I type the syntax as it shows, it just says it’s an invalid switch.

The bsod on boot is because the windows driver doesn't like the dos ones or their initialized state on your system. I get the same thing on a p4 based system. Try moving the initialization to a separate batch file.

I suspect your command line is wrong with the dos config. If you post the command line you're using and someone here can tell you what's wrong with it.

I don’t understand why it would be wrong though as these commands are automatically generated in autoexec.bat and config.sys. But I can share how I currently have them set up.

Also, it doesn’t appear as though the Audigy12 patch can be unloaded…? I tried to and even checked the readme. I just hope if I can uninstall the DOS driver after playing a game so I can load back into Windows without a crash.

Here’s my autoexec and config files at the moment:

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-21, 02:04:

I don’t understand why it would be wrong though as these commands are automatically generated in autoexec.bat and config.sys. Bu […]
Show full quote

sharangad wrote on 2025-11-21, 01:48:

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-20, 16:27:

Yeah, so, even with the ISA sound card removed, I still get a BSOD on boot if I have the SB driver enabled. And the audio ports are still set different. I really don’t understand the config of its drivers though. As I said, if I type the syntax as it shows, it just says it’s an invalid switch.

The bsod on boot is because the windows driver doesn't like the dos ones or their initialized state on your system. I get the same thing on a p4 based system. Try moving the initialization to a separate batch file.

I suspect your command line is wrong with the dos config. If you post the command line you're using and someone here can tell you what's wrong with it.

I don’t understand why it would be wrong though as these commands are automatically generated in autoexec.bat and config.sys. But I can share how I currently have them set up.

Also, it doesn’t appear as though the Audigy12 patch can be unloaded…? I tried to and even checked the readme. I just hope if I can uninstall the DOS driver after playing a game so I can load back into Windows without a crash.

Here’s my autoexec and config files at the moment:

The attachment IMG_5101.jpeg is no longer available

The attachment IMG_5100.jpeg is no longer available

You're right it looks like sbeinit can't be unloaded.

I meant the command line for sbeset and sbecfg.

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-21, 02:04:

Also, it doesn’t appear as though the Audigy12 patch can be unloaded…? I tried to and even checked the readme. I just hope if I can uninstall the DOS driver after playing a game so I can load back into Windows without a crash.

No idea what's causing your crash, but you shouldn't put AUDIGY12.EXE into AUTOEXEC.BAT. The driver installation most certainly didn't place it there, as it's incapable of doing that. As mentioned in the guide, you should only run AUDIGY12.EXE when booting into a pure DOS environment. Trying to load it under Win9x could interfere with its volume mixer.

Similarly, don't put CTMOUSE.EXE and MSCDEX.EXE in there, as they could mess with Windows' own mouse and CD-ROM drivers. In fact, you really shouldn't modify AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS by yourself when using Win9x. Either create a custom PIF file for running pure DOS, or put your commands into DOSSTART.BAT. But that's far beyond the scope of this guide, and you should open a new thread if you have any additional questions on those procedures.

Lastly, I'll say once again that this guide needs to be followed to the letter. Literally. Read it very carefully, and perform every single step exactly as instructed. Don't skip any steps unless told to, and don't make any extra changes on your own, no matter how small they might seem.

sharangad wrote on 2025-11-21, 02:38:

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-21, 02:04:

I don’t understand why it would be wrong though as these commands are automatically generated in autoexec.bat and config.sys. Bu […]
Show full quote

sharangad wrote on 2025-11-21, 01:48:

The bsod on boot is because the windows driver doesn't like the dos ones or their initialized state on your system. I get the same thing on a p4 based system. Try moving the initialization to a separate batch file.

I suspect your command line is wrong with the dos config. If you post the command line you're using and someone here can tell you what's wrong with it.

I don’t understand why it would be wrong though as these commands are automatically generated in autoexec.bat and config.sys. But I can share how I currently have them set up.

Also, it doesn’t appear as though the Audigy12 patch can be unloaded…? I tried to and even checked the readme. I just hope if I can uninstall the DOS driver after playing a game so I can load back into Windows without a crash.

Here’s my autoexec and config files at the moment:

The attachment IMG_5101.jpeg is no longer available

The attachment IMG_5100.jpeg is no longer available

You're right it looks like sbeinit can't be unloaded.

I meant the command line for sbeset and sbecfg.

I'm not sure I understand. The command line for sbeset and sbecfg? Am I supposed to put those in manually for them to run each time?

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-21, 12:34:

sharangad wrote on 2025-11-21, 02:38:

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-21, 02:04:

I don’t understand why it would be wrong though as these commands are automatically generated in autoexec.bat and config.sys. Bu […]
Show full quote

I don’t understand why it would be wrong though as these commands are automatically generated in autoexec.bat and config.sys. But I can share how I currently have them set up.

Also, it doesn’t appear as though the Audigy12 patch can be unloaded…? I tried to and even checked the readme. I just hope if I can uninstall the DOS driver after playing a game so I can load back into Windows without a crash.

Here’s my autoexec and config files at the moment:

The attachment IMG_5101.jpeg is no longer available

The attachment IMG_5100.jpeg is no longer available

You're right it looks like sbeinit can't be unloaded.

I meant the command line for sbeset and sbecfg.

I'm not sure I understand. The command line for sbeset and sbecfg? Am I supposed to put those in manually for them to run each time?

No, you said it complains about a parameter. That's why I asked for the command line.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2025-11-21, 06:53:

No idea what's causing your crash, but you shouldn't put AUDIGY12.EXE into AUTOEXEC.BAT. The driver installation most certainly […]
Show full quote

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-21, 02:04:

Also, it doesn’t appear as though the Audigy12 patch can be unloaded…? I tried to and even checked the readme. I just hope if I can uninstall the DOS driver after playing a game so I can load back into Windows without a crash.

No idea what's causing your crash, but you shouldn't put AUDIGY12.EXE into AUTOEXEC.BAT. The driver installation most certainly didn't place it there, as it's incapable of doing that. As mentioned in the guide, you should only run AUDIGY12.EXE when booting into a pure DOS environment. Trying to load it under Win9x could interfere with its volume mixer.

Similarly, don't put CTMOUSE.EXE and MSCDEX.EXE in there, as they could mess with Windows' own mouse and CD-ROM drivers. In fact, you really shouldn't modify AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS by yourself when using Win9x. Either create a custom PIF file for running pure DOS, or put your commands into DOSSTART.BAT. But that's far beyond the scope of this guide, and you should open a new thread if you have any additional questions on those procedures.

Lastly, I'll say once again that this guide needs to be followed to the letter. Literally. Read it very carefully, and perform every single step exactly as instructed. Don't skip any steps unless told to, and don't make any extra changes on your own, no matter how small they might seem.

I figured putting Audigy12.exe in there would quicken things if it initialised on boot, rather than doing it manually each time. But I believe, even if that's not there, it still crashes just from having the automated lines to load SBE itself along with EMM386 and HIMEM. I can try again a bit later, but I'm pretty sure it still crashes.

Oookay... Have I been doing things wrong this whole time...? I was led to believe commands for setting up mouse drivers and CD-ROM were supposed to go into autoexec.bat? A command is placed in config.sys and then the line I have in autoexec. Otherwise I get no mouse or CD-ROM in DOS at all. No one's said anything about creating a PIF file. Or putting commands in DOSSTART.BAT. 😮

I will admit, there is one step I did skip. ^^; Installing DirectX 9. For a while I've not wanted 9 on. I can't remember if there was a specific reason for that, but I remember planning on just sticking to 8 at most. I can't remember if having 9 on meant something had problems and that was why I decided against it.

Also, I take it the extra Creative Utilities are purely optional? That they don't all need to be installed?

sharangad wrote on 2025-11-21, 12:39:

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-21, 12:34:

sharangad wrote on 2025-11-21, 02:38:

You're right it looks like sbeinit can't be unloaded.

I meant the command line for sbeset and sbecfg.

I'm not sure I understand. The command line for sbeset and sbecfg? Am I supposed to put those in manually for them to run each time?

No, you said it complains about a parameter. That's why I asked for the command line.

Ohhhh. Sorry, I thought you were referring to the crashes/BSOD. >_< ^^; Ahh, that syntax. No, I don't have any commands in autoexec or config for those. Usually, when I load sbeset it gives you examples of what to put, but they never work when I try.

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-21, 12:45:

Oookay... Have I been doing things wrong this whole time...? I was led to believe commands for setting up mouse drivers and CD-ROM were supposed to go into autoexec.bat? A command is placed in config.sys and then the line I have in autoexec. Otherwise I get no mouse or CD-ROM in DOS at all. No one's said anything about creating a PIF file. Or putting commands in DOSSTART.BAT. 😮

Again, beyond the scope of this guide, and not needed for its functionality. Watch this video by Phil where he explains that.

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-21, 12:45:

Also, I take it the extra Creative Utilities are purely optional? That they don't all need to be installed?

Nothing in this guide is optional, except for the MT-32 emulation and the Roland SC-55 soundfont sections, which are labeled as such. Also, certain steps only apply to Audigy 2 or ZS cards, but that's always clearly highlighted.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2025-11-21, 12:56:

Again, beyond the scope of this guide, and not needed for its functionality. Watch this video by Phil where he explains that. […]
Show full quote

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-21, 12:45:

Oookay... Have I been doing things wrong this whole time...? I was led to believe commands for setting up mouse drivers and CD-ROM were supposed to go into autoexec.bat? A command is placed in config.sys and then the line I have in autoexec. Otherwise I get no mouse or CD-ROM in DOS at all. No one's said anything about creating a PIF file. Or putting commands in DOSSTART.BAT. 😮

Again, beyond the scope of this guide, and not needed for its functionality. Watch this video by Phil where he explains that.

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-21, 12:45:

Also, I take it the extra Creative Utilities are purely optional? That they don't all need to be installed?

Nothing in this guide is optional, except for the MT-32 emulation and the Roland SC-55 soundfont. Also, certain steps only apply to Audigy 2 or ZS cards, but that's always clearly highlighted.

Oh. Okay. Whoops. ^^; I figured a lot of those were the usual un-needed 'bloatware' or only needed for Windows, but not for the purposes of DOS. ^^; But that's fine, I can start over and follow things to the letter.

And thanks for the link. I'll give it a watch. 😀

Also, I just tried removing the Audigy12.exe from the autoexec.bat and it still crashes with a BSOD on boot. So I figured adding it to autoexec wouldn't make a lot of difference if both are going to make it crash either way. And then just comment them out if I want to boot as normal.

Also, I've noticed if I try and run a test in the Utility, where it detects the card and its ports, you can run an audio test in either 8 bit or 16 bit. If I run the test in 8 bit, audio will play, but then I'm not able to do anything. Almost like it freezes, stops responding. I can't select any options and quit.

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-21, 13:04:

Also, I've noticed if I try and run a test in the Utility, where it detects the card and its ports, you can run an audio test in either 8 bit or 16 bit. If I run the test in 8 bit, audio will play, but then I'm not able to do anything. Almost like it freezes, stops responding. I can't select any options and quit.

That's usually a sign that you may have a resource conflict, or a hardware problem.

Sometimes, even if you do everything right, a certain hardware combination simply doesn't work under Win9x. That's just how things were back then. If you have a different Win9x compatible PC, it might be worth trying the card there.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2025-11-21, 13:12:

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-21, 13:04:

Also, I've noticed if I try and run a test in the Utility, where it detects the card and its ports, you can run an audio test in either 8 bit or 16 bit. If I run the test in 8 bit, audio will play, but then I'm not able to do anything. Almost like it freezes, stops responding. I can't select any options and quit.

That's usually a sign that you may have a resource conflict, or a hardware problem.

Sometimes, even if you do everything right, a certain hardware combination simply doesn't work under Win9x. That's just how things were back then. If you have a different Win9x compatible PC, it might be worth trying the card there.

I see. I do as it happens. Though that's a test for another time. 😀

I had some free time today, so I decided to test analog CD audio on Audigy cards in pure DOS. Previously, there were some reports that this didn't work, and I can now confirm that too. Specifically, in pure DOS, this doesn't work on Audigy 2 (SB0240) and ZS (SB0350) cards. However, it works perfectly on an Audigy 1 (SB0090) card, under the same conditions. I'll reiterate that this only happens in pure DOS. There is no such issue when playing DOS games from within Win9x, regardless of which Audigy card is used.

I searched the forum for this problem and found a thread where it was discussed some time ago. Looking at what's written there, I think those posters were spot on. Meaning, this occurs because Creative changed how analog CD audio routing was handled while designing the Audigy 2. Unfortunately, they never provided official DOS drivers for Audigy 2 and ZS cards. So we're stuck using the ones which shipped with the Audigy 1, and those were evidently tailored to that card. In conclusion, if you want working analog CD audio in pure DOS on an Audigy, get the original SB0090 model.

I just tested a bunch of DOS games on the Audigy 1 (SB0090) using these drivers. The test system was a Celeron 600 on an Abit ZM6 motherboard (440ZX chipset) with a GeForce 2 MX400 graphics card. So one of the better scenarios for Creative's SB16 emulation. Later Intel chipsets likely wouldn't have been as compatible. All tests were performed in pure DOS 7.1. Here are the results.

Fully working games:

• Aladdin
• Ascendancy
• Command & Conquer
• Crusader: No Remorse
• Cybersphere
• Daggerfall
• Descent 1
• Descent 2
• Doom 1
• Doom 2
• Duke Nukem 3D
• Dune 1
• Dune 2
• Epic Pinball
• Eradicator
• Fatal Racing
• Gabriel Knight (CD version)
• Heretic
• Heroes of Might & Magic 2
• Hexen
• Jagged Alliance
• Jazz Jackrabbit
• Jill of the Jungle
• Lemmings
• Lost Vikings 1
• Lost Vikings 2
• Master of Orion 2
• Monkey Island 1
• Monkey Island 2
• Mortal Kombat 1 (CD version)
• Mortal Kombat 2
• Mortal Kombat 3
• One Must Fall 2097
• Prince of Persia 1
• Prince of Persia 2
• Privateer 1
• Privateer 2
• Quake
• Red Alert
• Shadow Warrior
• Simon the Sorcerer 2
• Skyroads
• Stonekeep
• Terminal Velocity
• The Lion King
• The Settlers 1
• The Settlers 2
• Tomb Raider
• Transport Tycoon
• WarCraft 1
• WarCraft 2
• Witchaven
• Worms
• X-Wing

Partially working games: (music plays, digital audio doesn't)

• Duke Nukem 2
• Gods
• Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (CD version)
• King's Quest VI (CD version)
• Prehistorik
• Space Quest V
• Tyrian

Non-working games: (crash on startup)

• Dyna Blaster
• Mortal Kombat 1 (floppy version)
• Rambo 3

This should provide a basic assessment of the card's DOS compatibility. Note that the results might differ if you play these games from within Win9x. Lastly, the games were only tested briefly, to check if sound effects and music work correctly. I haven't played them extensively on this rig.

Looks like I've found another reason not to install DirectX 9 and consequently why I can't follow the steps exactly. I think it's making my system lockup/freeze. It's happened twice now. Once during the installation of the VXD drivers and then after rebooting and trying to load the utility up again. 🙁

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-23, 23:21:

Looks like I've found another reason not to install DirectX 9 and consequently why I can't follow the steps exactly. I think it's making my system lockup/freeze. It's happened twice now. Once during the installation of the VXD drivers and then after rebooting and trying to load the utility up again. 🙁

DirectX 9.0 is officially supported on Windows 98SE, and installing it shouldn't cause any crashes.

If that happens on your system, then you may have some underlying stability issues, possibly related to hardware problems or resource conflicts. You need to troubleshoot that before trying to get any further with this guide.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2025-11-23, 23:32:

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-23, 23:21:

Looks like I've found another reason not to install DirectX 9 and consequently why I can't follow the steps exactly. I think it's making my system lockup/freeze. It's happened twice now. Once during the installation of the VXD drivers and then after rebooting and trying to load the utility up again. 🙁

DirectX 9.0 is officially supported on Windows 98SE, and installing it shouldn't cause any crashes.

If that happens on your system, then you may have some underlying stability issues, possibly related to hardware problems or resource conflicts. You need to troubleshoot that before trying to get any further with this guide.

I can't imagine what as it's a fresh install and there's not very much installed. I've tried it twice now, after reverting back to the image before installing anything to do with the audio drivers, and the same thing happened again.

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-23, 23:37:

I can't imagine what as it's a fresh install and there's not very much installed. I've tried it twice now, after reverting back to the image before installing anything to do with the audio drivers, and the same thing happened again.

Have you tried an actual clean install, without using an imaging program? Meaning, a fresh install of Win98SE, followed only by the motherboard drivers and the graphics card drivers, as suggested in step 1.4 of this guide.

If you still get a crash when installing DirectX 9 afterwards, then you likely have some system stability problems. Maybe open a new thread for that, and someone else might be able to help.

Joseph_Joestar wrote on 2025-11-23, 23:45:

DustyShinigami wrote on 2025-11-23, 23:37:

I can't imagine what as it's a fresh install and there's not very much installed. I've tried it twice now, after reverting back to the image before installing anything to do with the audio drivers, and the same thing happened again.

Have you tried an actual clean install, without using an imaging program? Meaning, a fresh install of Win98SE, followed only by the motherboard drivers and the graphics card drivers, as suggested in step 1.4 of this guide.

If you still get a crash when installing DirectX 9 afterwards, then you likely have some system stability problems. Maybe open a new thread for that, and someone else might be able to help.

Yep. Did that, too. Just the other day, in fact.